Las Vegas Community

Is the bubble bursting? Or engulfing everything around it?

Did you know that most of the biggest tech conferences make Las Vegas one of their prime stops? The new tech and startup bubble in sin city began forming in 2012 and it hasn't stopped growing.

In 2016 Vegas had the pleasure of hosting HCM Excellence Conference, Learning Solutions: Sharing What Works, 2016 Spring CLO Symposium, DevLearn, CES, and many more in recent years including SXSW V2V and Collision Conference. The new tech conferences and resources appearing all over the place are due to an increasing appreciation in the government and business community for the many economic benefits of this fast paced growth sector.

Right now, Las Vegas is seeing a huge influx of tech related jobs; especially in green energy and the drone industry. Last year, Nevada was one of only six states to receive a two-year certificate of authorization from the FAA to test drone technologies in the state. That has brought companies from around the globe into Nevada, hoping to jump into this virgin market.

In addition to the ongoing innovations of this kind, the overall resources for growing and supporting the next generation of engineers in Vegas is covered from all angles! From high schools offering technological career paths such as the Advanced Technologies Academy and Career and Technical Academies in Clark County, to public Higher education degrees in tech from the College of Southern Nevada, CSN, Arts Institute, as well as independent training programs like Iron Yard and more.

The Money 20/20 Hackathon coming to Vegas on October 22nd to the 25th has been established as a premier event for the world’s best developers, and has set an entirely new standard for Hackathons globally. Last year’s event brought together teams that battled for $125K in cash prizes and international notoriety as they were challenged to showcase their skills and vision using the APIs, SDKs and other tools from today’s leading Payments and Financial Services Innovators.

Needless to say, the tech scene, with its opportunities for connection and education in Las Vegas are raising the bar to new levels of excitement and possibility and are destined to transfer this tourist destination city.

First Hospitality Focus Tech Team Graduates at Iron Yard Ventures

Iron Yard Ventures was ranked as one of the top startup accelerator programs in the United States in both 2015 and 2016. Since 2012, IYV has invested in more than 62 early stage technology companies who have gone on to raise more than $100 million in follow-on funding. No small potatoes especially for the funded programs.

In Spring of this year, Iron Yards Ventures announced a hospitality-focused accelerator for downtown Las Vegas. During November, the team is celebrating the graduation of accelerator Batch 6 (the term for this year’s class), and credits the tech community in Las Vegas for their strong support of this program.

"So many people have been amazing in helping out our companies, but the best I think is yet to come," said Ryan Negri, Managing Director of the accelerator.

Negri points to accelerator mentor Robert Rippee, Director of the Hospitality Lab at the International Gaming Institute, as a valuable mentor to the teams in the program this fall. Rippee met with Nobal Tech, one of the batch startups. The startup creates innovative and intuitive digital interfaces to enhance customer experience and is changing the way people interact with their world.

"Robert Rippee is connecting them with the builder of the new Resorts World casino/hotel and also to the CEO at Wynn," noted Negri. "This could lead to the installation of their mirrors into over 30K rooms."

This year’s cohort has teams from all over the world. Four of the batch talented teams are local to Las Vegas, while others traveled from Atlanta, Calgary, and Johannesburg.

"Curating a diverse cohort comes natural to me, as I’ve grown up in diverse cities and have traveled the country," said Negri. "I don’t see color when I’m being pitched. I don’t hear accents when I evaluate a startup. I look at the team, and how they work together, how they treat each other, and their staff. The person is so much more important than the product. That was my hunch before the program, but the program confirmed that for me. I look at a team and ask, ‘Can this team pivot and still be successful?’"

For other investors and startup accelerators looking to increase their portfolio diversity, Negri suggests searching for underserved companies by targeting underserved cities, programs, and universities.

VEGAS INC and Cox Business highlighted Southern Nevada’s greatest technical achievements at its sixth annual Top Tech Exec Awards at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts on Tuesday, November 15, 2016.

While guests enjoyed complimentary drinks and desserts from the Four Seasons’ catering department, the evening’s emcee and Greenspun Media Group’s publisher, Gordon Prouty announced the winners. Honorees were also featured in the November 20, 2016 issue of The Sunday and November 21, 2016 issue of Vegas INC.

An independent panel of judges, many of whom received a Top Tech Exec award in 2015 determined the winners. Selections were based on factors such as recent achievements, impact on his or her company, major projects, and more.

The 2016 Top Tech Exec honorees are:

Clifton Cole, Virtual Design and Construction Manager at The PENTA Building Group (private business)

Shavonnah Tiera Collins, Managing Director of RedFlint Experience Center was awarded the Community Exemplary Award. The brand new RedFlint Experience Center opened in October 2016, and seeks to provide startups, established companies, and entrepreneurs with access to new concepts, programs, and technology, as well as provide training to professionals who have fallen behind with rapidly advancing technology.

Press Release: All in Web Pro Launches Vegas Visionaries

For immediate release:

On November 1st 2016, local Web & Graphic Design company All in Web Pro.com, LLC will launch a new community video project website entitled Vegas Visionaries. The company's founder, Owen Carver, had the idea to create a website to capture the ideas and passion of local leaders and innovators who have a vision for how to make Las Vegas a more thriving and sustainable place.

The goal is to use the power of the internet to share these kinds of ideas with everyone in Southern Nevada and connect local leaders and innovators who would have never otherwise connected. It's like Ted Talks but specifically about how to make Las Vegas a better place.

Once launched, anyone will be able to visit the VegasVisionaries.co website to watch 4 minute videos of local visionaries sharing their passion, ideas, and projects they are working on to make Las Vegas a better place. The website is designed to help educate Las Vegans about the power that ideas have to transform our world when they are turned into action.

Anyone who considers Southern Nevada home and has a specific vision for how to make Las Vegas a more thriving and sustainable place is encouraged to apply to become a Vegas Visionary online on their website. Residents are also encouraged to nominate anyone in their community. Applicants and nominees must already be taking action on their vision and know what specific actions others can take to help make their vision a reality. Local residents of all ages and backgrounds are encouraged to apply! .

"In Las Vegas we have all the knowledge, skills, passion, and manpower to solve every challenge our communities face in Southern Nevada", says Carver. "Our biggest challenge is simply connecting everyone with other local visionaries and spreading stories about the many easy ways people can get involved to make their city better", he continued.

Founder, Owen Carver, is currently running for Nevada State Assembly in District 2 in the Summerlin area of Las Vegas.